Getting Out of the Boat
Today’s post is from Chris Arias, a former mentee of mine who heads up The Renegade Room here in Atlanta. Chris is a serious Jesus-follower, husband and father of three. The experience he describes below led him to create the ministry Expedition at Sea. Twice a year, he takes small groups of men sailing for five days off the coast of southern California, offering a great opportunity either individually or with your mentoring group to do something awesome together. –Regi Campbell
In 2005 I was invited to join a Radical Mentoring group. I was surprised I made the cut. The guys I knew from previous groups were sharp, high-achieving business leaders who already seemed to have stuff pretty well together. I was (and still am) a long-haired music producer and writer. I felt a little like the representative from the local Indian reservation who showed up to a city council meeting barefoot, in rawhide chaps and headdress. But that misperception vanished the first night we met. It was an amazing year of connecting, walking together and learning to see ourselves and each other the way God sees us.
Fast forward to 2011. A lot was going wrong in my life. While most of my problems were business-related, the enemy leveraged my cash flow issues to profoundly shape my sense of identity. He contorted my troubles in the marketplace into the idea that I was also a lousy husband, father and Jesus-follower. I became convinced that the man in the mirror was a total loser.
In the midst of the self-loathing, discouragement and discontentment, I was invited to help a stranger deliver his sailboat from Bermuda to Salem, MA. We were moored in St. George’s Harbour with an amazing view of the white limestone roofs adorning the hills around the anchorage . . . surrounded by beauty. Yet there I sat despising myself and feeling like an enormous disappointment to God and man.
Looking back, it’s hard to imagine how I became so deceived. This is one of the most potent hazards of flying solo for too long. It had been six years since I was in an intentional environment . . . sitting regularly in a circle of peers who knew me, were for me and could speak truth to the lies operating in my life.
If you read through the New Testament, you’ll notice many of the disciples’ most defining moments happened on boats: Jesus walking on the water, calming the storm, catching the monster haul after a fruitless night of fishing. It was in a boat that the disciples exclaimed beyond doubt that “Truly, you are the Son of God!” The day the risen Jesus convinced Peter of the goodness of his heart, the depth of his forgiveness and the weight of his calling, he called him out of a boat. The sea has a unique capacity to capture a man’s heart and focus his attention Godward.
As it turned out, Eric, the ‘stranger’ who owned the sailboat, was a mature believer. He had no idea what was going on in my life. But God used him to pick the lock to the door of my deceived and hardened heart.
When we were midway across the Atlantic, I came on deck for my 3:00am watch and was dumbstruck by what greeted me. The waxing moon had set on a cloudless night and as far as the eye could see, the horizon was littered with stars. My mouth instinctively fell open. The Milky Way was clear and distinct, streaking from horizon to horizon.
And to think that it was just an average, workaday galaxy, indistinct from the billions of other galaxies knocking about in the universe at large.
At large.
At very, very large.
Sitting alone at the helm of a small vessel in the vastness surrounding me was the smallest I’ve ever felt.
And then God, who seemed distant for so long, came to me on the water and whispered in my ear . . .
“I made all of this. I made the ocean that cradles you. The wind that moves you. And every one of these stars that cover you. All that is alive to you and in you right now was my idea.” I could hear a smile in the great whisper. “I made all of this. And I made you. And I love you more than you will ever know.”
There I was. A tiny man, in the middle of an ocean, in the midst of a galaxy, in the expanse of the universe, in the endlessness of God’s love. It would take over a year to truly own that, but I’ve never doubted God’s love for me since.
A huge part of living in the reality of God’s unfailing, inalterable love has been intentionally walking with other men. Specifically, continuing to seek the voice of mentors and, now that I’m a little older, walking with younger men to encourage them and help them decipher the pages of their stories.
If you’re like me, you may never quite feel like you’re ready to lead other men. If we’re honest, the idea might even be downright terrifying. But if you’ll step out and trust God, He will come to you and invite you to walk on the water with Him.
To learn more about Chris and his ministry, Expedition at Sea, visit expeditionatsea.com or watch the video below.
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Responses (10)
Thank you for that encouraging word. God is amazing how he shows himself in everything.
This is so cool…..inspiring to see someone take a passion and then recognize God in it and then decide to share it with others. Beautiful…..God must love listening to the sailboat conversations!
Hey Craig-
Yes! The sheer beauty of the Pacific off of southern California aside, the conversations are by far the best part of the trips. We conquer the enemy “through the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony.” We’re convinced that when men share their stories, God has word to speak *to* every man and – just as importantly – *through* every man. It’s hard to believe how powerful sharing your story with other men really is.
Our tendency is to only put the best version of our story out there, like a Facebook page. But the power is telling the whole, unvarnished story. That’s where you see the Father’s redemptive hand at work and that’s where other men find courage to trust God with the grittier parts of their own story.
This story and it’s message could not have been more timely. I could actually picture the scenery through the written words. Sailing and the heavens…two of my favorites… God’s un relentless love is truly amazing. Thanks
Hi Elia-
That’s so encouraging. God has an amazing capacity to give us just what we need, just when we need it.
Freedom!
Fantastic job Chris! Proud to know you!! Will add this to my bucket list. Are you living in CA now?
Hey Mark-
Great to hear from you! I’m still here in Atlanta. We take guys sailing there because it’s gorgeous all year and the sea life is amazing. Love to have you along sometime!
Great stuff! Thanks all! I feel similarly blessed as an over – the – road truck driver seeing God’s amazing creation on a daily basis! He is amazing in countless ways!
Hey Scott-
What a great reminder to keep our eyes open for God’s goodness wherever we are in our day to day. We don’t have to go to some exotic location to see him at work if we’re attentive. A friend of mine regularly sends me picture of the sunrise or cloud formations from his high rise office window. It’s amazing!
What a great story! Hey Chris, we’re praying for your next Expedition and can’t wait to hear how God continues to work in your life and those that join you at sea.